Thursday, May 25, 2006

A Very Merry Unbirthday

Today is "Birthday Free Dress Day" for all the students with summer birthdays. We decided to celebrate shmoo's "unbirthday" by bringing in a batch of cupcakes to share. We made our favorite chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting and organic sprinkles.

For lunch, a "low carb" tortilla is wrapped around refried beans and packed with a container of salsa for dipping, plus cantaloupe balls, jicama, and baby carrots. I'm not really a low carb person (to say the least!) but these "low carb" tortillas were the healthiest choice at the grocery store; they're made with oat and whole wheat flour, and oil instead of hydrogenated shortening or lard.

Verdict: I felt grumpy waking up early to frost 27 cupcakes (you don't appreciate how many kids that is until you have to frost them each a cupcake at 6 in the morning), but bringing them in and hearing the kids cheer made it seem worth it. The "low carb" roll-up was a big hit, too. Only a couple baby carrots remained in the lunch box. 4 stars.

There is a huge difference between frosting cupcakes the night before and the morning of. One year, trying to save time and sanity, I frosted the cupcakes the night before. I woke up the next day to find a trail of ants from my patio to my kitchen, and all over half the cupcakes. I think I almost killed myself.

You're right about the low-carb tortillas, Jennifer. At Trader Joe's, the only tortillas they carry that are 100% whole wheat are lower-carb. They're really delicious, though, and loaded with fiber. They sort of remind me of Chipotle's tortillas, actually--very chewy.

27 cupcakes? You definitely rock! Happy unbirthday to the little one! Forgive me for telling my own tale here, but only my vegan pals can appreciate: today actually is my birthday (a very real one - 39 - unfortunately) and I had to work. I'm a critical care nurse, and most days are so crazy I'm lucky to eat lunch period. Well, long story short, my awesome coworkers arranged a great day for me. They surreptitiously figured out my favorite meal at my favorite veg restaurant, arranged to pick it up, and also got me a beautiful vegan birthday cake at Whole Foods. I was SO surprised! They really went out of their way, and it made me feel so good. How nice was that?

PS: BTW, JSchmoo, my recent "loaf" was a hit with some of these same omni nurses! ;-)

Happy unbirthday to Shmoo and all the kids w/summer b'days. A great lunchbox as always, Jennifer. And i don't blame you for bein' a bit grumpy in the a.m., frosting all those cute cupcakes. How awesome to have them (and your efforts) be so appreciated though!

OK Jennifer, you have me stumped. Do the melon balls or the tortilla roll ups get the lid?? I'm scared to pack anything even mildly juicey in my non lidded container. I just start thinking of all the nonlidded containers tastes mixed together, melony tasting cauliflower or steamed cabbagey tasting trailmix. I just had to ask. :)

I totally hear you on grumpy 6 am's! I am so blessed to have a toddler who wakes up between 7 and 9, depending on what she feels like. No early mornings here anymore! You GO GIRL for frosting cupcakes so early. That's a dedicated mom! I would have frosted and stored them in the fridge overnight.

I'm not sure which is worse-- waking up early to frost cupcakes/cookies/whatever, or looking at the clock at 3 am and wondering why you're up so late making cookies.

I will never give everyone cookies for the holidays again. It seemed like a nifty idea, but after the third batch, you start wondering if one can perhaps die from cookie dough overdose and spare oneself the misery of cutting out hundreds of cookies and icing them.

On a completely different note, those cantaloupe balls tempt me to go buy melons. I haven't had one in what feels like forever!

And the refried bean roll-ups is another one of your ideas I've been borrowing on a fairly regular basis since I discovered your blog. (I think I love them because they take only seconds to make, and I'm too lazy to make elaborate sandwiches in the morning, let alone frost 27 cupcakes!) My roll-ups aren't as neat as yours though, they get all misshapen when I try to cut them up.

And the idea of tortillas made with lard horrifies me. There is just no need!

ruthie, my kids have these lunchboxes (thanks to this blog!), and i find that we have pretty good luck with things, un-lidded, not leaking into other things. although i know jennifer uses plastic wrap sometimes just in case (i use a piece of waxed paper and a rubber band if in doubt).

I'm definitely not a low-carb person, either, but just the other day I bought a package of those low-carb tortillas for the same reasons as you. I have no idea if this varies by brand, but I couldn't make it through one burrito - they're oddly rubbery and tough. I guess maybe I'll have to learn to make my own if I want "healthy" tortillas.

If you can find Ezekiel tortillas, they are quite fabulous. they contain no lfour, only sprouted grains and are a "complete protein". They're also super filling.You would find them in the freezer section.They are fabulous. Super filling and healthy. :0)

Have you ever pitched an idea to the Food Network or PBS for your own television show? Your meals are chef-calibre and I have benefitted tremendously from reading your site. I am vegetarian, not vegan; even meat eaters could benefit from your wonderful recipes and sense of style when it comes to food. The most rabid meat-eater would find the knishes delicious. I would know...I am married to a meat eater husband. Now that he eats a meatless supper every night, he grumbles, "you know, I DO feel better eating less meat."

Yours is a favorite of ours over at the Bossa Nova Barbeque...where the grill is cruelty-free!

Jennifer, I have a tip for you... If you get a Wilton large star decorator tip (I think it might be #1M?), you can frost cupcakes in a snap. I am telling you, it takes me like a minute to frost 12 cupcakes. And they come out pretty. You can't mess them up.

Oh, and btw, I have vegan brioche proofing in my kitchen as we speak. The mashed potato trick is a stroke of genius! My son is allergic to eggs, and this is a fabulous idea. Thanks!

>>what is the star rating system? How do you judge the success of a lunch?

Well, it's pretty arbitrary. 5 stars is he loved it, praised it, and ate every bite, and I felt proud of my work. 4 stars is good, he ate most of it. 3 stars is okay, he left more than a couple bites behind, or I just felt that it wasn't my best somehow. 2 stars or 1, it stunk.